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Lionel Messi has said that he found his penalty miss for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) against Real Madrid in the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League 'hard to swallow'.
Messi was a constant thorn in Madrid's side during his time at Barcelona, scoring 26 goals and providing 14 assists in 47 El Clasicos. During his first match against Los Blancos in PSG colors, he was handed the chance to open the scoring in the second half of their first-leg last-16 clash.
Thibaut Courtois, however, made the save to keep the scores level. Kylian Mbappe ultimately scored the only goal of the match deep into stoppage time but PSG lost the reverse fixture 3-1 in Madrid.
Les Parisiens were eliminated in the Round of 16 — a fate they suffered once again the following season against Bayern Munich. Speaking in L'Equipe's documentary Ballon d’Or 2022: la course vers l’eternite, via le10sport (h/t PSGTalk), the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner said:
"This elimination was very painful because we had two good matches, especially in the first leg, where we deserved to obtain a better result. I missed a penalty, and for me, it was hard to swallow."
PSG recorded more possession in both games and took 21 shots in the first leg as compared to Real Madrid's three. Los Blancos, however, turned up the heat at the Santiago Bernabeu, taking 21 shots, out of which nine were on target.
Lionel Messi played four times in the knockout stages for the Paris-based giants but failed to register a goal or an assist.
Former PSG star Lionel Messi among favorites to win Ballon d'Or award
Lionel Messi is widely thought to be one of the heavy favorites to win the Ballon d'Or for a record eighth time when the awards ceremony takes place at the Theatre du Chatelet on October 30.
The 36-year-old famously led Argentina to the 2022 FIFA World Cup title, winning the Golden Ball after scoring seven times and providing three assists in seven games. He also ended the 2022-23 season with 21 goals and 20 assists in 41 games across competitions for PSG.
Since his summer move to Inter Miami, the former Barcelona superstar has netted 11 goals and laid out five assists in 14 games across competitions. His form with La Albiceleste has also been impressive in 2023.
Lionel Messi has scored eight goals and provided an assist in the six international games he has played in since the showpiece event in Qatar. Erling Haaland has also made a strong case for the Ballon d'Or award after scoring 52 times in 53 games in Manchester City's treble-winning 2022-23 season.
